Medical Officer's annual report [to] Durban Corporation.
- Durban (South Africa). Public Health Department
- Date:
- [1912]
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Medical Officer's annual report [to] Durban Corporation. Source: Wellcome Collection.
167/178 page 83
![AnriexLii*e “ B ’ ] SMALL-POX OUTBREAK, 1912. Small-pox, after an absence of six years from the Borough, made its appearance in January—-almost at the same time as Plague. The first case in tlie outbreak was probably a Mozambique native employed as a tinsmith in Commercial Load. This man left Durban about the 13th January, intending to take a holiday. His movements immediately after that time have never been ascertained, but some days later he turned up,sick at Prospect Hall, and was given shelter by some Indians living there. He died oil the 24tli of January, without being seen by a medical practitioner, but the necessity for a death certificate caused the people with whom he had been Jiving to call in a medical man after death, when it was seen that lie had been suffering from Small-pox. The medical practitioner who viewed the body made certain inquiries, which went to show that the native lived and worked ill premises in Commercial Hoad, Durban. All those whom we had reason to believe had been in contact with him were vaccinated and kept under supervision and the premises disinfected. A most pains-taking search was made without finding out much about the deceased beyond the fan that he was said to have lived continuously in Durban for over a year. The next cose was a Togt native living in the Central Togt, Barracks and working in one of the Corporation gangs, who was found sick on the 20th January. His illness was not then sufficiently advanced to enable a diagnosis to be made, but as there was a certain amount of suspicion about hi,m lie was removed to Congella and kept under observation till the disease developed. In the meantime disinfection was carried out at the Barracks. Immediate]v on the development of the case to a point where the nature of the disease could he definitely diagnosed the patient was removed to the Beach Epidemic Hospital for Coloured cases, and arrangements made to vaccinate the whole .of the inmates of the barracks. This vaccination was carried out by Drs. Birtwell, Adams, and myself in the evening. Thereafter a close watch was kept on all the contacts, and fortunately no other cases occurred. This was really the first case which occurred in the Borough. The native stated that he had been work- Jno> in Durban for a year, and the source of his infection could not be traced. On the morning of January 20th, a doctor asked me to see a native umfaan suffering from a skin eruption, who had been sent to his consulting rooms. On arrival I was able to confirm his diagnosis of Small-pox, and the patient was at once removed to the Beach Hospital. This native had been employed in a newspaper printing office in the vicinity of the place where the first mentioned case occurred. He had been over two months in town, and no other probable source was found. All the usual process of' disinfection was carried out; the other natives rniPployedAn the printing shop were at once bathed, put into new clothes, and vaccinated; and vaccination was offered to all the European employees who cared to avail theihse|ves of this protection. One of the latter who w*as not vaccinated afterwards developed the disease at his home outside the Borough, but though a strict watch was kept over all the contacts living in Durban none of them were affected. The precautionary measures adopted would fcefcm to have been fairly effectual, for no more cases of Small-pox occurred among residents of the Borough till the 28th March. On the -5th February, a native, on His arrival at Durban Hailway Station from Hatting Srpuit, and a native child brought into Durban for medical advice from Phoenix on the 9th, were found to be suffering from Small-pdx. Both cases were removed to hospital and all the usual precautionary measures’ carried 6tit.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b31486496_0167.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
